Everton academy star Sean McAllister has highlighted his desire to follow in teammate Isaac Price's footsteps and make the step up to the first team in the future.
The midfielder made 13 appearances for the under-23s over the course of last season while also stepping up to three EFL Trophy matches, scoring one goal in that trio. Over the course of the 2021/22 campaign however a number of players from the academy setup regularly got opportunities to progress.
One of those was Price, who made his Premier League debut off the bench against Arsenal in the final match of the campaign. McAllister praised the pathway that allowed his Northern Ireland youth teammate that chance, and described how good he has felt ever since joining the Blues.
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He told evertonfc.com: "I want to reach the highest level I can with this club. I enjoy coming in every single day and I just love it here.
"One of my best mates is Isaac Price – we’re in the same Northern Ireland youth team – and it’s amazing to see him up with the First Team and being part of matchday squads. It shows that pathway is there.
"I loved the place straight away, ever since I first came over on trial. Everybody around the club is just so friendly and my family felt exactly the same.
"The lads in the squad made me feel as if I had been here for years. I fitted in instantly. My granda actually came over recently and he loved every minute of it, too. Everton is just full of good people.
"I feel really comfortable here. I live in digs with Dylan Graham, a goalkeeper who is also from Northern Ireland, and Charlie Whitaker. It’s a good group and we got on very well."
McAllister also described a similar route that he had to football as Everton captain Seamus Coleman. The pair both started off in another sport before finding their way into a local team.
"I actually played Gaelic football and hurling before I started playing football, like Seamus Coleman did when he was younger," he added.
"I was about seven when my Gaelic manager asked me and my brother to come to play for a local football team called Chimney Corner. That’s how it all started. We used to go to seven-a-side every Friday night and I just loved it.
"Playing Gaelic was a big part of my childhood, though, and I played up until the year before I signed for Everton in 2019. I still enjoy watching it on the TV and, when I was home over Easter, I went to watch my brother play."
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